Welcome to Alderley, a magnificent mansion in the heart of the West Country where a grand house party is taking place. The preparations have been made, the guests have been invited, and the staff are on hand. What could possibly go wrong? Let the entertainment begin. The theft of the diamond necklace and the antique pistols might all be explained, but the body in the lake - that really was a puzzle. 'Don't expect me to solve anything,' Inspector Wilkens announced modestly when he arrived to sort out the unpleasantness.

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Publisher's Summary

Welcome to Alderley, a magnificent mansion in the heart of the West Country where a grand house party is taking place. The preparations have been made, the guests have been invited, and the staff are on hand. What could possibly go wrong? Let the entertainment begin.

The theft of the diamond necklace and the antique pistols might all be explained, but the body in the lake - that really was a puzzle. 'Don't expect me to solve anything,' Inspector Wilkens announced modestly when he arrived to sort out the unpleasantness. And at a gathering that included English aristocracy, foreign agents in disguise, a ravishing baroness, a daring jewel thief, a Texas millionaire and, of course, the imperturbable butler, it was going to take some intricate sleuthing to uncover who killed whom and why.

The novel follows through on its title -- a very funny, campy "manor house" murder mystery set on eve of WWII. The crazy-quilt denouement was, however, too long for my tastes although lovers of convoluted Golden Age homages may like the multiple twists. Cornelius Garret displays virtuosity, but I would have preferred more restrained voices for some of the international accents. I look forward to the subsequent "mangled mink" affair and hope that Audible unearths more from Anderson.

I was thoroughly enjoying this story until the final wrap up, and then things got so unnecessarily convoluted that I needed a cheat sheet showing where each character was at every moment in connection with every other character. I enjoyed the writing style and the characters and the fact that there was no unnecessary violence. He came so close, I will probably give the author another try. The narrator was good, except that the female voices were a little funky.

I was expecting a comfortable cosy murder mystery, per other people's reviews. This story starts off alright, but rapidly degenerates into complete implausibility combined with too many characters and not much character development. Maybe it is better in the print version - perhaps there are maps of the murder scene or other visual aids to help the reader enjoy the story.

Cornelius Garret could read the phone book and I would pay to listen. He is the reason I discovered James Anderson. I highly recommend this book. It is a mystery that you could solve IF you pay attention to the details. Really close attention. Really. Close. Attention. If you enjoy Agatha Christy type mysteries please read The Affair of the blood stained Egg Cosy. Garret brigs a myriad of quirky characters together that are so distinct it is impossible to remember that only one person is reading.

Would you consider the audio edition of The Affair of the Bloodstained Egg Cosy to be better than the print version?

yes a great listern

What other book might you compare The Affair of the Bloodstained Egg Cosy to, and why?

Agather christie

What about Cornelius Garrett’s performance did you like?

very clear voice

If you made a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

classic whodunnit

Any additional comments?

easy going,fun in places old fashioned murder mystery

0 of 0 people found this review helpful

bookeholic

Peterhead, Scotland

1/22/15

Overall

Performance

Story

"Brilliant"

Foreign dignitaries , American billionaires, Spies, a jewel thief and a baroness among others all converge at a house party where a murder is committed enter Inspector Wilkins and Sergeant Leather. A most enjoyable whodunnit. Cornelius Garrett, as always, brilliant!

0 of 0 people found this review helpful

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